April 22, 2018 • 4th Sunday of Easter
Live the Gospel
Objective The children will play a game that helps them understand a shepherd’s job.
Activity l Getting Home. (pages 2–3) Gather the children at the worktables and distribute scissors. Direct them to open Seeds to the game on pages 2–3. Direct them to put their finger on the sheep at top left (Start). Invite them to go up and down the path with you. Ask: What are the dangers? Remind them that a shepherd’s job is to get all of the sheep home safely.
Direct the children to cut off the strip on the right (page 3) and cut off the sheep and fold it in half so it will stand. This will be their game marker. The sheep is gray on one side and white on the other so two children playing together can have different colored markers. Demonstrate how to cut apart the 10 squares. Each child will put all 10 squares facedown in a pile.
The children can play the game alone or in pairs. The object
of the game is to get the sheep home to the sheep pen. They
put their markers at the beginning of the game, then take turns drawing a square from the bag. If the square is a color, they advance their sheep to that color. If it is a danger picture, they put their sheep on the picture and tell how the shepherd will keep them safe from the danger. After a few minutes with the game, encourage the children to play it at home with their family.
Activity l Shepherd Puzzle On the back of the game squares is a picture of a shepherd. Direct the children to turn their game pieces over and put together the puzzle of the shepherd. Send the game-puzzle pieces home in an envelope.
Activity l Thank you, God. (page 4) Have the children turn to page 4 of Seeds. Call the children’s attention to the brother and sister praying at bedtime. Direct the children to look at the other pictures and notice that someone is helping a child in each of them. Ask: What is the boy saying thanks for? What is the girl saying thanks for? What other helpers might the children be thankful for?
Closing Prayer l Psalm 23 Gather in the prayer circle. Invite the children to repeat these verses of Psalm 23 after you:
The Lord is my shepherd.
There is nothing I need.
He leads me to quiet waters.
He guides me along good paths. He is at my side
to give me courage and comfort. Amen.
Play and sing “Let’s Celebrate Now” (CD-2, #12) to bring your Seeds session to a close.
Remind the children to share their Gospel Weeklies with their families and to do the Family Corner activities and prayer together.
page. Tell the children they are like the sheep with Jesus. Jesus will care for each of them and for each member of their families.
Help the children write their names and the names of their family members on the sheep. Close with this prayer, asking students to repeat each line after you say it. Begin and end the prayer with the Sign of the Cross.
Jesus, you are our shepherd. We are your sheep.
Please guide us.
Teach us what to do.
Keep us safe.
We will follow you.
Thank you for taking care of us. Be with us now and forever. Amen.
Have the children close the What the Church Believes and Teaches handbooks and return to Seeds, pages 2–3.
Lesson Wrap-Up
Visit gospelweeklies.com/catechists-teachers to download Seeds Weekly Review template.
Use Activity #20 from the Seeds Activity Book as a take-home activity or lesson wrap-up.
Unit 4: We Celebrate Jesus’ Death and Resurrection l TG4-23